Also, note for priests: you simply lay the host on the tongue in this manner, as seen in the lower photo - this way you can actually see the host lay gently on the tongue. Do not flip your hand over and try to place the host on the tongue, as many do.
Source: KNOW YOUR MASS which is my favorite book on the Mass for kids and adults, buy HERE.
The "Know Your Mass" book is an excellent resource in many ways, but unfortunately, like many pre-Vatican II resources, it shows the faithful putting their hands under the Communion cloth which several rubricians speak out against; e.g., J.B. O'Connell in The Celebration of Mass: A Study of the Rubrics of the Roman Missal (1964) and the famous Matters Liturgical (1956).
ReplyDeleteThe reason for this is because the surface of the cloth should be flat to prevent the Host from sliding down a slope cause by hands placed under the cloth. Another reason is that hundreds of hands touching the cloth can not only soil, but also damage it.